Archive for May, 2011

Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam has a new album Ukulele Songs. It’s just that – Eddie Vedder and a ukelele. I suppose it’s mildly interesting as a novelty, but I’m not hearing much in the way of SONGS in this, but for a couple of covers. Vedder’s hero Pete Townshend did a song or two with ukelele, so what the hell. I’m all in favor of ukeleles and pretty much any unusual instrumental cover, but Vedder’s using JUST the ukelele. On one hand, he does have a strong voice which is emphasized in this, but it makes for very thin arrangement. I might care more about that if it involved more memorable songs.

Also, there’s a new record from Jordan Knight. He’s notable as the lead singer for New Kids On The Block, which in fairness have been about the longest last boy band ever or something. The samples I’m hearing here sound like utterly contrived modern commercial radio fodder, except that they absolutely lack any hooks. Maybe this would do you some nostalgic good if you’re a girl who use to get funny feelings down there when you were 10 years old and listening to NKOTB. Otherwise, I completely don’t see the point.

Here’s the complete list of this week’s major new CD album releases:
Death Cab for CutieCodes and Keys
Atlantic
Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock

I don’t know what’s wrong with people. Sales of music have fallen in half over the last dozen years or so – and the most popular thing that they actually do spend music money on is a tired, homely and utterly talentless whore like Lady Gaga. I can’t even be bothered to make fun of her. She has a new album this week.

Then there’s a new Brad Paisley album. I think he’s supposed to be a “country” singer. I know I’ve heard a few of his songs, but damned if I can remember any of them. Don’t know why anyone would need to fool with stuff like this when they’re still making Hank Williams and Tom T Hall albums.

I would not vote for Ron Paul for dogcatcher, cause the man’s a fool. In the theory, I agree with most of the political principles that Ron Paul nominally espouses, but surely not in anything to do with foreign policy.

One of the basic problems with Ron Paul is simply that he’s a pure ideologue. He gets some idea of a principle in his mind, and will follow it all the way over the cliff with absolutely no regard to actual reality. We all tend to shoehorn the world to make it fit our mental paradigms, and the more ideologically committed we are the worse we do it.

Here, Ron Paul is so adamant to apply his ideas of international law and whatnot that de facto he would have let Bin Laden go. Why, he would have gone to the Pakis and had them arrest him and we could have had a trial. “What’s wrong with that?” Paul asked. “Why can’t we work with the government?”

Seriously, there are people who think this guy should be President of the United States with no better judgment than that. Alright then, congressman, let me answer your question briefly. We couldn’t work with the Pakistan government because they were obviously hiding this guy for some years. If we told the Paki government that we knew where he was, they would have tipped him and moved him somewhere else.

Also, what kind of ideological supposedly “libertarian” nonsense makes you think that Bin Laden had a trial coming to him? He openly declared war on the US and proceeded to mastermind and cheerlead the massacres of thousands of our people. What incorrect philosophical or ethical principle makes you think that such a person should expect anything other than to be hunted down and shot in the head?

And exactly what kind of trial was he supposed to get, and from whom? Does the honorable congressman really think that Bin Laden should have been brought to New York and gone to court? Really? How could that have possibly actually, really worked?

Jumpin’ Jebus on a pogo stick, Ron Paul has less sense than Barack Obama. Even the worst cheesy anti-American Marxist college professor we could find to make POTUS has more sense than this guy.

I so wish Ron Paul would just go away. There are plenty of people to make good libertarian and Tea Party arguments. This guy just gives all us rightwing libertarian nutjobs a bad name.

It’s always good to have a new Peter Case album. This week Brother Peter has The Case Files on Alive Records. Haven’t heard enough to make any big judgment, though “Let’s Turn This Think Around” and “Kokomo Prayer Vigil” are sounding good. Note that Amazon is giving away the last song, “Round Trip Stranger Blues.”

The Cars are back with Ric Ocasek. Move Like This sounds exactly like the Cars, except without all those pesky hooks like the old days.

The Randy Newman Songbook, Vol 2 features Randy Newman doing basic stripped down piano and voice arrangements of his old songs, mostly not his better known songs even among his fan base. The original records were mostly pretty good, certainly not over produced. But then it’s good to just hear slightly different arrangements and performances of “My Life Is Good” and “Kingfish” among others, and it could draw you in to some lesser known classics.

Your best bet for putting a little fresh spice in your life this week is Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 2. It is the eighth album from the Beastie Boys. What I’ve heard sounds a lot better than that awful tuneless 5 Burroughs album.In Your Dreams is Stevie Nicks first album in ten years. She co-wrote most of the songs with producer Dave Stewart. Instead of the horse on the cover, she probably should have gone all the way with the fantasy element and made it a unicorn.